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Polka—
4 beats/measure, 60 measures/minute, a fast Two Step
There is some evidence that in 1822, a Czechoslovakian poet named Celakovsky wrote a dance named the "Cracoviacs" that was almost identical to the Polka (Giordano, vol. 1, p.168, 2007), but the popular story is that in 1830, Anna Slezak, a little girl of Bohemia, was humming, and skipping to her tune, when a local schoolmaster happened by and wrote down the tune and the steps. The other village girls learned the "dance," and soon it was being danced in Prague, where they called it the Polka, from the Bohemian pulka, which means half, and refers to the half step or closing step that was part of the major figure. Yet another story makes it a Czech servant girl, Anna Chadimova, but the polka was being danced in Vienna in 1839, in Paris in 1840, in London in 1843. In the United States, Professor L. De. G. Brookes, ballet master at the National Theater, NY, and Miss Mary Ann Gammon danced the Polka in May, 1844. It was one of the first of the "round" dances." Before the Polka and the Viennese Waltz (1825), ballroom dancing involved the formal, stylized, pattern dancing of the quadrille, cotillion, and minuet. These older dances were slow, courtly, and stately, with "deep bows, graceful separations and meetings, ... always at arm's length." (this from Lloyd Shaw's The Round Dance Book, 1949)
And then couples came together into one another's arms, into an intimate embrace, and they "waltzed" around the floor with what appeared to be considerable gaity. It was scandalous. The Polka was not the only couple, round dance at the time, and they were all casually referred to as "waltzes." There was the polka-waltz, the schottische-waltz, the galop, and mazurka. This was a new way to hold your partner.
Today, we Polka in our Two Step rhythm. It is fast and skipping, with lots of turning and even childish joy. The first round dance Polka we learned was Street Fair, a phase II Two Step, written by Merola in 1972.
(For additional figures, see the Two Step page.)
Figure Name, Phase Level, & Timing
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Steps and Actions That Make Up the Figure
These descriptions are primarily based on Roundalab's Standards For Round Dancing and on cue sheets written by many choreographers (see Links page). |
Here are some sequences to help you visualize the figure in context.
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NOTE: There are many technical terms and abbreviations that are widely used in round dancing. For instance, if you encounter non-standard punctuation, I am probably trying to indicate the musical timing of a figure, where a comma separates two beats of music, a semi-colon marks the end of a measure, and a slash (/) indicates a split beat, two things occuring in a single beat. Elsewhere, you can find descriptions of dance positions; basic dance steps, actions, and directions; and other dance abbreviations. WOMAN'S FOOTWORK — I try to describe what the man does and then in parenthesis what the woman does. In this way, you can read in one sentence what each partner is doing during that beat of music, rather than read about the man in one place and maybe the woman in another paragraph. I don't want to encourage the man to read only about his part and the woman only about hers.
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| Basic
qqs;
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In semi-closed position, step forward on the lead foot, close trail foot to lead, step forward on lead again. Does it feel like a child skipping? The polka really has a little hop in it, too, either fwd, cl, fwd, hop; or hop/fwd, cl, fwd, -; |
Repeat with trail foot free for a Two Forward Two-Steps (see below).
The old-time Heel and Toe Polka went: heel, -, toe, -; step, close, step, -; repeat with trail foot;; (ss; qqs;)
The Glide Polka went: slide left, -, close, -; left, close, left, -; Of course, the lady begins with the right.
In the Kropfs' Happy Time Polka, part A begins in varsouvienna, lead feet free, with a heel, cross lead in front of trail, fwd L (woman R)/ close R, fwd L; then right heel, XRIF, fwd R/cl L, fwd R;
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| Walk Two
ss;
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In any position beginning with either foot fwd, -, fwd, -;
You can curve the path and walk away from each other. You can solo "roll" if you step fwd, release your partner, and turn 1/2, and then step back and turn 1/2 again.
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Street Fair begins in butterfly position with a roll two; walk two; two forward two-steps;; and two turning two-steps;; |
| The Square
qqqq; qqqq; qqqq; qqqq;
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In half open position facing LOD, step fwd L (woman fwd R), fwd R, fwd L, fwd R turning sharply 1/4 LF (W 1/4 RF); fwd L, R, L, R toward COH turning 1/4 LF (W toward wall and turning 1/4 RF); fwd L, R, L, R toward RLOD turning 1/4 LF (W turning 1/4 RF); fwd L, R, L, R toward wall (W toward COH) blending to a designated position; |
In Pas the Bananas by the Scotts, there is 2 slow side closes; 2 turning triples; the square;;;; slow rock side recover cross twice;; to an open vine 8;; |
| Run Four
qqqq;
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in any position beginning with either foot fwd, fwd, fwd, fwd; |
Try a walk two down line; run four; step kick; turn and walk to reverse; run four; step kick and turn back to line; |
| Side Close; Out Two-Step; Side Close; In Two-Step;
ss; qqs; ss; qqs;
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In closed position, line of dance, step side on lead foot turning RF, -, cl in SCAR, -; fwd, cl, fwd diag wall, -; sd, -, cl to BJO, -; fwd, cl, fwd diag cntr, -; |
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| Scissors
qqs; qqs;
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In closed line, step sd turning rf, cl, xif woman xib to scar, -; sd turning lf, cl, xif to bjo, -; |
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| Pickup
s
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In semi position line of dance, step fwd with trail feet, woman turning LF 1/2 to face man; end in closed position line of dance. |
In semi-closed position, lead feet free, try a forward, pickup; and a triple; forward two; and a triple; |
| Two Forward Two-Steps
qqs; qqs;
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in semi line fwd, cl, fwd, -; fwd, cl, fwd, -; |
Lefeavers' Merry Christmas Polka starts part C with two forward two-steps; twirl two; walk two to butterfly; heel, -, toe, -; side two-step; toe, -, heel, -; cross, side, cross, -; |
| Away and Together
qqs; qqs;
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in semi line fwd trn away, sd, cl, -; fwd and face, sd, cl, -; |
circle away; |
| Two Turning Two-Steps
qqs; qqs;
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In closed position, step sd, cl, fwd turning 1/2 to face cntr, -; repeat to face wall again; |
alternate two forward, two turning . . . |
| Circle Away and Together
qqs; qqs;
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fwd trn away, cl, fwd trn LF woman RF, -; fwd trn, cl, fwd to face, -;
You are dancing a two-step away from each other, man toward center of hall and woman toward wall, and then a two-step back toward each other. |
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| Circle Away Two and a Two-Step Together Two and a Two-Step
ss; qqs; ss; qqs;
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From semi position, turn away from each other and step fwd, -, fwd, -; fwd, cl, fwd, -; lunge on trail feet turn LF woman RF, -, fwd back toward partner, -; fwd, cl, fwd to closed, -; |
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| Circle Away Two Triples Strut Together Four
qqs; qqs; ss; ss;
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From semi position, turn away from each other fwd, cl, fwd, -; fwd, cl, fwd turning LF woman RF to face, -; step fwd back toward partner body erect shoulders back, -, fwd, -; fwd sway upper body, -, fwd to closed, -; |
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| Face to Face and Back to Back
qqs; qqs;
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in bfly wall sd, cl, sd turn away 1/2, -; sd, cl, sd turn to face, -; |
Street Fair ends with four of these in a row;;;;;;;; and then a side, XIB she twirls RF under lead arm, step apart, point; |
| Vine
ss; ss;
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in bfly wall sd, -, XIB, -; sd, -, XIF -; |
vine again for a vine 8
In the Kropfs' Polka Medley, we walk two in open position fwd two-step; again; vine apart 2 and side two-step; vine together 2 side two-step to butterfly wall; traveling door both ways;;
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| Twisty Vine
ss; ss;
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in bfly wall sd turning RF, -, XIB woman XIF, -; sd turning LF, -, XIF woman XIB, -; |
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| Strolling Vine
ss; qqs; ss; qqs;
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in closed line sd turning RF to scar diag wall,-, XIB woman XIF turning LF back to line, -; sd turning LF, cl, sd to diag cntr, -; sd, -, xib, -; sd, cl, sd turning back to diag wall, -; |
Lefeavers' Merry Christmas Polka has a strolling vine as an interlude, then he does two turning two-steps;; face to face; |
| Scoot
qqqq;
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in semi fwd, cl, fwd, cl; |
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| Basketball Turn
ss; ss;
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In open position, lunge fwd on lead feet, turning to face partner, and pat lead hands. Recover on trail feet, turning to reverse, lunge to reverse turning away from partner, and recover to open position line of dance (does not travel; trail foot stays in one spot). |
circle away and together |
| Lace Up
qqs; qqs; qqs; qqs;
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In semi-closed position, line of dance, step fwd and lead lady across in front of you with lead hands, close, and step fwd, -; fwd with lady to man's left, cl, fwd, -; fwd and lead lady with trail hands back in front to man's right, cl, fwd, -; fwd in semi, cl, fwd, -; |
In Scherrers' Anthony Boy Polka, part B begins with a lace across & fwd two-step;; fwd two-step; face, -, stamp, -; to reverse line of dance lace across & fwd two-step;; fwd two-step; face & stamp; to a traveling door twice;;;; |
Go beyond this manual. Good instructional books and videos, both new and used, are available at low prices at Amazon. Find other references on our Sources and Links pages.
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